Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi,
I am new to the forum as my daughter was only diagnosed with Austistic Spectrum Disorder last summer, after a year and a half of assessments. We applied for PIP last April (I am her appointee) and have just been sent a letter saying she will not receive it, despite never going out alone and not being able to cope with communication with people other than her immediate family, and that is limited. She scored 4 points for 'engaging with other people face to face' and 4 points for 'planning and following journeys'. Zero points for everything else, despite a face to face assessment where I explained that she goes out on average once a week, sometimes less, and is always accompanied. She has lots of sensitivities, particularly with food.
Has anyone else experienced this? I am preparing an appeal. It says on the covering letter ' I realise you have a disability or health condition and receiving this decision isn't the news you were hoping for'. It's a joke.
So just to update, yesterday had a tribunal regarding my son's PIP. The clerk came in and said that and the panel had determined the appeal without a hearing, in our favour. The Judge said to me that they ( 3 panel members) only meet on the morning of their hearings and so can only discuss the cases when they get together. She told me that it was unnanimous decision & that, all 3 members could not understand what the DWP had been " playing at", as it was clear cut, 100% consistent with the evidence and the DWP's OWN decision re awarding enhanced daily living award, ie that my son needs support for undertaking both known and unknown journeys. I was both shocked and stunned to put it mildly!
So what I say to anyone who is thinking is an appeal worth it, yes, keep going, be repetive in your submission, submit evidence in detail about the impacts that the disability has, and get advice from wherever you can.